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Introduction to MBA Interviews

Interviews form an integral part of any selection process of an MBA college. It allows the panelists to assess the candidate - ascertaining his/her job fitment - so that they find the right and apt bunch of people in their batch. This article will introduce you to interviews of MBA college.

Interview Format

An interview can have almost any format. You can either have a single interviewer, a panel of interviewers or have a candidate complete multiple interviews with different individuals. Each format has its pros and cons.

Individual Interview

The individual interview comprises of a candidate with one single interviewer.

An individual interview allows a more in-depth conversation with the candidate, allowing the interviewer to assess the candidate in a much better manner. The interviewer is able to have more prolonged and deeper conversation – and thus gain more insights into the candidate's abilities and skills – through this interview.

The negatives of an individual interview are that the person interviewing might not be the only person that the candidate might have to work with, and other members might not be able to know much about the candidate.

Group Interview

Group interviews consist of a panel of interviewers – more than one – interviewing the candidate.

Group interviews allow more than one interviewer to ask questions to the candidate. This allows multiple people – who will eventually work with the candidate – to assess the candidate, and check his/her job fitment.

The negative bits of a group interview is that it, at times, lacks an in-depth one-to-one conversation, that is only possible if the interview happens with only a single panelist.

Multiple Round Interview

In this format, you can have multiple rounds of one-to-one interviews.

The advantage of this approach is that the you get to assess candidate through multiple one-to-one rounds of interviews, with different panelists. This allows each panelist to thoroughly assess the candidate with in-depth conversations.

However, the negative of this is that this slows down the interview process, since the candidate has to go through multiple rounds of interviews with different sets of people.

What is a "Business School Interview"? Why at all Interview is conducted?

Scoring well in the entrance test is only winning half the battle and you now need to shift your attention to the face to face interactions with the selection panels. The next step is the MBA personal interview which is conducted with the objective of assessing the interviewee's suitability for admissions. A personal interview is the B-school’s attempt at knowing the candidate as a person and assessing the various traits of his personality. Most of the management institutes conduct an interview prior to accepting a candidate into the program. Candidates are tested on parameters like initiative, team skills, task orientation, willingness to learn, leadership capabilities, goal clarity and stress management. An interview, though nerve wracking for many candidates, is also an opportunity for the candidate to express himself and prove that he is worthy of admission into the program. It is essentially conducted to determine whether the candidate is the right fit for the program.

What are the evaluators looking for in an MBA Interview?

Attitude , Approach, Attention, Application of Theory to Practice

Body language, Behaviour

Confidence, Clarity of thoughts, Career plan, Curiosity, Consistency

Determination, Discipline and Dedication.

Enthusiasm, Eagerness, Energy, Ethics.

Focus, Family background.

Goal orientation, General awareness.

Humor, Humility, Hard work.

Interaction, Initiative.

Judging skills.

Knowledge, Killer instincts.

Listening skills.

Motivation.

Neatness, News

Openness to ideas, Opinions, Optimism.

Presence of mind, People skills, Planning and Preparation, Personality.

How to prepare for an MBA interview

MBA interviews include questions regarding the candidate's most recent academic profile, his work experience, general awareness, his career, extracurricular activities and achievements. They may also include questions related to the candidate's reason for doing MBA, about his dream MBA institute, his long term career goals etc. The panel does not expect you to know everything you are asked in an interview, so be honest. Treat the interview as a conversation rather than making it a question-answer affair. The interview is about how the candidate communicates and responds to pressure situations, so it is important to stay calm and composed.

As an interview is an opportunity to highlight yourself, so make sure you know your unique value proposition and are able to talk about it in the interview. Your performance in the interview determines your chances of selection to a large extent. So spend a lot of time and effort on your MBA interview preparation and do not make the mistake of considering it a formality in the selection process.